The Positively Perplexing Petal Blossom Coven
by StarlitHorizons
Summary: Marth is a young magi simply trying to make his way in the world; with steep competition and a thousand decisions around every corner, it doesn't seem to be easy. Getting an internship at one of the most respected witch's covens in the world is, evidently, child's play. Adjusting to life amongst the other employees? Not as simple. Magical AU
1. High Expectations

**A/N: **What? What? _Starmy is actually alive?  
_Well, yes! Somehow, hahaha. I was in a bit of a really bad slump because of school and some other personal stuff, so writing took the back burner... and then stayed there. It's been hard to get back into the swing of things, and I've been writing some stuff, but I haven't been able to really _work _on them to a point I thought was satisfactory. So I'm not going to post any of them until I finish them.

So for now, have this instead! AU in _every single sense of the word, _just because I enjoy this sort of theme, haha. It's something that I've had in mind for a really long time now, and it's something that's meant to be more episodic and just something that I can jump on or work on whenever I feel the need to. Just for fun, you know? Not too serious or anything.  
And for now, it's a bit... short, hahaha. Especially by standards of my account, usually. But I'll have more soon! Like, actually soon. _Really.  
_It's also unbeta'd, so, that's fun too.

Please enjoy! \ u/

* * *

**Chapter One: **High Expectations

* * *

There were many countless times when Marth had been nervous.

There was nearly every single day of his life up until he was ten, when he thought that the gift of magic had been passed to _everyone _in his family except for _him, _and he was going to be stuck the single human in a family of magi. He'd gotten out of that mess by sneezing and accidentally getting himself stuck to the ceiling for the better part of three hours.

There was that time he almost cursed a human boy when he was startled; his entire head had turned violet, from the roots of his hair straight to his teeth. He'd gotten out of that because the boy was an idiot and didn't even notice before it turned back to normal about three hours later.

More recently, there was when he was forced to decide just what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. Did he want to devote his time to knowledge, experiments, and solitude as a wizard? Scorn everything that was known to be good and dear and delve into the dark magics as a sorcerer? Or did he want to become a working-class nobody as just a lowly mage?

He'd gotten out of that by choosing to be none. Instead, he was going to apply for an internship – but was he technically still a mage, then...? - as a witch in one of the most respected covens in the magi world. This was all well and good, of course; witches handled business. He could do that. They frequently specialized in a few areas of expertise, and once he was exposed to enough, he was sure he could do that, too.

But now he had to actually show up.

Which made him nervous on entirely different levels.

* * *

For years, the Petal Blossom coven had been by far one of the most impressive and admired covens in the community. They had risen up from practically nobody – a coven in a small, unimportant circle in the middle of nowhere. A band of kids playing pretend in a big, abandoned house.

Nobody quite knew how it happened, but they had expanded at a rapid pace. They'd gained small bits and pieces of knowledge, they collected another staff member here and there, and eventually they jumped from whatever circle they'd originated in – no one remembered or really cared about the name – to the famed Smash Circle, full of witches, wizards, mages, and _probably _sorcerers, all of the highest caliber.

How they had done it was anyone's guess. Their staff was exceedingly small – less than a dozen witches – and yet they were somehow able to fulfill a majority of their client's requests. They had access to almost everything on the market, and if they became aware of something that they didn't have access to, you could be damn well sure they'd have it by the end of the week. Or the day. Their determination, power, and achievement struck awe, respect, envy, and fear into all who were aware of them.

What nobody really said, but everyone really understood, was the silent reason these feelings were doubled: the Petal Blossom coven was, evidently, exclusively women.

Of course, to Marth, this didn't matter so much. He was used to being around girls a lot; most of his closest friends were female! But all the same, he wasn't sure whether or not his gender was going to change anyone's treatment of him.

Actually, that was wrong. He'd been _totally certain _that was going to change things. He hadn't even been planning on calling them for the internship because he was sure they were going to laugh at him or curse him over the phone for being a stupid boy and he would be stuck walking around as like, a duck or something for a week. And what would he do then? What kind of coven would accept a _duck _as an intern?

Well, considering how odd some covens were, probably quite a few. But he had his dignity!

Apparently, his whole duck argument wasn't enough to convince his father or mother or sister that he shouldn't try, so he was stuck internally quivering as he called the coven and asked if they were accepting internships.

"Oh, you're looking to be an intern?" the sugar-sweet sounding woman on the other side had asked, and it hadn't _sounded _unkind, or anything.

"Um... yes, I was hoping that you were-" he'd started a bit hesitantly, but he couldn't even think of where to go with the rest of that sentence before he was cut off.

There was a cry of, "Oh, fantastic!" that made him jump a little, and he could practically hear her smile as she asked him, "When can you start?"

Marth hadn't been really sure what to make of _that, _so he was left silent for a few moments before he stammered, "D-Don't you want my credentials, or... or something?"

"Credentials?" the woman had asked as if the thought had just occurred to her. "Your credentials? Well, you can do magic, can't you?"

"Well... Well yes, otherwise I wouldn't be calling..."

"And do you have a chosen specialty yet?"

"No, I was hoping the experience would help me choose-"

"Then you're completely qualified!" she'd crowed happily, and he thought that a touch of some sort of sparkle had come out of the receiver from her excitement. "Now, when can you start?"

"I, uh... at the... the beginning of next week?" he'd said a bit uncertainly. "Would that be alright...?"

"Certainly! The address is – oh, you know the address, you called us. See you on Monday – uh, what was your name?" she'd added as an afterthought, and Marth had to wonder whether or not he'd dialed the right number.

"This... This _is _the Petal Blossom, right?"

"This This Is The Petal Blossom Right? That's kind of a long name, do you have a nickname?"

He was struck silent for a few moments more before he shook his head, blinking rapidly. "I... no, that's not my name, I was making sure I had the right number."

"Oh! Well, then yes, this is the Petal Blossom coven, currently on the list of the top ten covens in the magi world and one of the three covens in the Smash Circle, established quite-some-time-ago and currently positively blooming, thank-you-very-much," she'd rattled off like it was nothing. "You are currently speaking with Peach, by the way! Peach Toadstool."

Marth felt like his stomach had turned into individual knots. Peach Toadstool – the founder of the coven herself was taking his phone call? And she acted like _this?_

"Now that I've told you my name, the only reasonable thing is to tell me yours now, right, Mister Intern?" she'd prodded sweetly.

"Marth," he'd said simply, having decided not to question this any longer. "I'm Marth Lowell."

"Great! Starting Monday, yes?"

"Yes."

"A-Okay, I'll be sure to tell everyone to expect you!"

"I... Miss Toadstool?" he interjected once he thought she was about to hang up, making her pause.

"Mister Marth Lowell Intern?"

_Good grief. _"It's not an issue that I'm... not a _woman, _is it?" Had there been some misunderstanding? He knew from certain angles, he looked rather feminine, but he certainly never thought that he sounded that way...

There was a pause for a few moments when he was sure that he'd blown it, but then Peach let out a loud laugh that either intensified his jitters or put them to rest. Violently. "Oh, goodness, no! Why? Should it be?"

"N-Not at all!" he stammered quickly, shaking his head. "I was just... making sure! That there weren't any misunderstandings."

"None at all! I think. If there are, we can sort it out eventually! Now, I'm a bit busy, so I'll see you on Monday, okay?"

And then she'd just hung up. Just like that. The phone clattered to the ground from his hand, and he wasn't sure what else to do other than sigh.

So cue packing.

Cue the most nerve-wrecking, nervous week of his _entire, very nervous life._

Fast forward to him standing in front of an old, abandoned mansion. The local haunt. A haunted house.

He didn't have a way to get out of this one.


	2. Warm Welcomes

**A/N: **UPDATING TWO DAYS IN A ROW? Something fishy is going on here. Very fishy. now excuse me as I disappear for another half of a year

But yes, here's some more unbeta'd witchy thing, haha. I felt bad since the first chapter was really short for my standards... and then this happened, hahaha. So, uh, oops? Might be hard to follow at some points, I'm sorry in advance for that!

I hope you guys enjoy, regardless; your reviews and follows are all very much appreciated, you wonderful people. / v\ No, really, I love you.

* * *

**Chapter Two: **Warm Welcomes

* * *

When Marth really thought about what he was expecting from his real role models, he'd expected some sort of respectable place, at the very least. Not necessarily completely grand, but not really small, either; well put together, a bit of elegance here and there, and yet a vibe of slight eeriness that drove most humans away.

That was not at all what he received.

From outside, the mansion had very clearly seen better days. Boards were loose, shutters were hanging off of their hinges, and the roof was missing quite a few shingles between its holes. The entire structure seemed to be sagging under its own weight, and the thought that he was going to be _living _in this sort of place was a little less than exciting.

Elice at least had the decency to drop him off in front of the house directly. He could never get used to her teleporting magic, since the feeling of disappearing entirely always left him feeling jittery and his ears always popped afterward, but it was nice to not have to walk too far and get lost. Evidently, no one even came down this street, which seemed accurate enough; despite being surrounded by bustling suburbs, there didn't seem to be a single occupied house anywhere near the mansion and not even an animal was crossing the street. Eerie was a bit of an understatement, but he supposed that was the point.

With a heavy sigh, Marth looked back towards the mansion and started up its uneven walkway carefully, trying to avoid twisting his ankle on the slightly cracked stones. Grass from the yard had long overgrown and begun to invade the surrounding sidewalk and even the slightly rotting porch. He moved up the few steps carefully before he came to the door, and he found himself staring at it with clammy hands. Peeling old paint, a heavy brass knocker, and a rather simple doorknob which seemed to be staring him down.

As he studied it, the young man found himself wondering if he could perhaps just say that he got lost on the way here, but that was a ridiculous thought. He'd been accepted to one of the most influential places _in his world _without even a _second thought. _Turning back now would just be slamming the door straight in the face of his future.

With that in mind, he took the door handle in one slightly clammy hand. It sent a brief electric shock through him, which startled enough to make him jump, but not quite enough to make him let go. He swallowed away his anticipation as he turned the handle and stepped inside, fully expecting to find cobwebs and rotting walls and threadbare carpets and all sorts of terrible things.

A soft bell rang overhead when he stepped inside, and he completely froze for a few moments before he could close it behind him.

The inside and outside were two different worlds. Two universes that had somehow collided to become a single establishment. He didn't understand how such a contrast was possible, much less bearable.

The walls were all a shade of a pleasant, very slight pink, and they were littered with various photos (some moving) and awards; beneath his feet was a plush red carpet that filled the entirety of the surprisingly small room. To the left and right were two entryways that he assumed led to other parts of the store; he couldn't quite see them entirely from where he stood, but he believed that he saw some bookshelves and cages in one of the rooms. In the back were two staircases, splitting off to two different doors and connected in the middle by a walkway. In the very back of the room was another very large door, leading to yet another room. In front of that was a solid wooden desk, which was covered in a variety of papers, an old-fashioned looking phone, what looked to be a small mirror, and a small vase bursting with red and pink flowers. It was a bit much to take in all at once, but the ginger looked up from her work to smile warmly at him once he stepped inside.

"Hello, welcome to Petal Blossom!" she greeted pleasantly, settling down her pen and clasping her gloved hands together. She was clothed in a yellow and orange gown; the contrast against the room was a bit much, to be quite honest. "What can I do for you?"

Marth paused before clearing his throat and stepping a bit into the room, shifting his two suitcases slightly in his hands. Her eyes immediately went to them and widened, and she broke into a grin before he even had a chance to open his mouth.

"Ah! You must be the new intern, right?" she asked excitedly, looking back to Marth's face again. "I was wondering when you'd get here!"

Marth paused a bit in slight surprise – but of course she would be expecting him! They'd been given nearly a week's worth of notice for his arrival, after all. "Ah- Yes, I'm Marth," he said with a charming smile, stepping up to the desk. "I'm not too late, am I?"

"'Course not!" the secretary laughed, and she turned her chair towards the desk mirror and tapped it a few times. Marth blinked in confusion at this action, his eyebrows furrowing further as she began speaking into it. "Peach? The intern is here!"

Perhaps he'd bitten off a bit more than he could chew.

Regardless, the woman smiled at him again, tapping the mirror once more as she turned. "My name is Daisy, by the way!" she told him, offering one of her white-gloved hands. "I'm the secretary here every day except for Tuesday and Thursday."

With a slightly more uneasy smile, Marth set some of his luggage down so he could take the hand and shake it. He was rather surprised by force the woman put into it, but he tried not to show it too much. "Ah... It's nice to meet you, then. I'm Marth- Oh, but I already, uh, said that," he said with a nervous laugh, and she gave a small laugh of her own as she withdrew her hand.

"Oh, there's no need to be so nervous! I'm sure you'll fit right in with the rest of us!" she reassured him, but he was somehow unconvinced.

"I'm here!" The shout came up from the left staircase, and a door at the top flew open in a flurry of papers. A woman in an unsurprisingly pink dress came moving down the stairs with surprising speed, given that she was also wearing _heels_, apparently – and she was holding a wide-brimmed witch's cap down to her head, trying to keep it from bouncing off of her hair, he assumed. It was black, as was typical; the had was a sign of the head of the coven, so he assumed this must be Peach.

As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she looked up at Marth with slightly flushed cheeks and sparkling blue eyes. "You must be Marth! Oh, I've been very excited to meet you in person!" she greeted cheerfully, hurrying over to him and taking his free hand in both of hers. She glanced down to his other hand and the luggage on the floor very quickly, smiling up at his face again. "Oh, good! You've got your things and everything. I already prepared a room for you upstairs, so you can get settled rather quickly! But..." She paused for a moment, her eyes flicking around him quickly again before she frowned at his face. "Do you have a familiar with you?"

The force of Peach's arrival was so utterly shocking that Marth could hardly formulate a coherent thought, much less a good response. He opened his mouth a few times like a fish out of water, trying to figure out how he was supposed to respond, before he simply stammered, "Sh-Should I?"

Peach smiled with a small giggle, releasing his hand finally and clasping them together. He noticed dimly that they were covered in silk, arm-length gloves, similar to the ones that Daisy was wearing, but longer; they turned into lace at the very ends, and he prayed in the back of his mind that he wouldn't be required to wear those, too.

"No, no, you're perfectly fine!" she replied, tilting her head a little bit. "We can get you one, if you want, or you don't really need one! Though it does make things much more interesting. Speaking of which!" She whirled around to Daisy, her blonde hair a blur of movement. "Call up the Cat, would you? We should get everyone down here! Oh!" She suddenly whipped back to Marth again, and he flinched backwards in case her bouncy hair chose to swat him in the face. "Would you like to get settled, first, or should we get introductions out of the way?" she asked sweetly.

Once again, Marth was left speechless, and he finally said quietly, "Um, I... it doesn't really matter to me..."

"Well, I suppose we can multitask," Peach mused, and she held out her hands to him. After a moment of confusion, he let out a soft 'oh' and placed his luggage into them. Suddenly, she whirled around and flung them up the staircase on the right, and he let out a soft noise of surprise. He had _fragile belongings _in there! And he somehow doubted that she had the strength for them to reach the top... so why weren't they slowing down?

They came to a rest at the top of the stairs, their spinning motion slowing until Peach made a shoo motion; the door opened and allowed the suitcases to float through simply, shutting behind him. The witch turned back to Marth again after a few moments of casual concentration, and she gave him a warm smile. "There we are. You can unpack later, yes?"

The bluenette stared at her openly for a few long moments, inwardly amazed. A levitation charm like that performed so casually? Peach had seemed like a bit more than a little bit of a ditz, but...

"Come!" she proclaimed happily, taking his hand again and practically dragging him by the desk. "Daisy, put up the sign! We have business to attend to!"

The secretary gave a light laugh, and Marth wasn't sure whether this was at Peach's overall attitude or the look on his face. There was a shuffling before she stepped after them, and the head witch pushed open the heavy oak door into a surprisingly open room.

It seemed to be a sitting room, of sorts; a variety of chairs sat around a large round table, sitting on top of a simple little rug in the middle of the room. They all seemed to be rather mismatched, but somehow not out of place. One was a very tall stool with a small blue and white checkered cushion on top; there was one that had several spikes in several places and seemed to be made entirely out of _metal_; another was an orange high-backed chair with a daisy pillow on it – he wondered who that belonged to; and at the head of the table was a large pink sofa, rather low to the ground with small golden adornments. There were two plush throw pillows against the arm rest, and a small golden crown was atop the back of it. He was hardly surprised when Peach seemed to float over to that one, and Daisy to the orange one, but astonished when Peach patted the space beside her. Slowly, he moved to sit beside her, and she beamed at him.

"We can just wait for everyone now," she told him pleasantly, tilting her head slightly. Marth nodded slowly, sending his gaze around the other chairs again, frowning slightly at what seemed to just be a silver looking _sphere_, and then taking in the rest of the room. There was a fireplace against one of the blue-wallpapered walls, but right now it was simply full of soot; in the two corners in the back, spiral staircases seemed to come down from the level above, though he wasn't entirely sure what they led to. It was where Peach had come from, at least. Wherever that was.

"Um... Miss Toadstool?" he asked hesitantly, and the blonde woman blinked at him before smiling gently.

"Please, just call me Peach," she cut him off with a small giggle. "No need for formalities, right?"

Marth paused for a few moments before he nodded slowly, studying the very comfortable sofa beneath him. "Uh... can you tell me... why you gave me the job so quickly?" he went on, and there was a long pause from the woman.

"Well, we're always a bit short on help," she mused, leaning back against her seat and tilting her head a little bit. "We don't get many interns, you know! And they usually don't last very long," she noted, glancing away thoughtfully as panic seemed to materialize in Marth's gut.

"They don't... last very long?"

"No, they usually don't like how exciting things are here," she clarified, nodding a little bit. That made him a bit relieved, honestly, but at the same time... "So they go find somewhere a bit more calm to work. I guess we'll see whether or not you can adjust, I suppose! Plus, your name is 'Lowell,' right?" she asked, making the man blink in surprise.

"I... well, yes. Why?" he asked in confusion, and Peach smiled warmly again.

"We know your name rather well. Your father is a very well-known witch, as I'm sure you're aware," she said, and he _was _rather aware. Which was where half of his pressure came from. "So I'm sure you'll be just fine, even if you're only just now starting out!"

Marth considered this for a moment or two before he let out a small sigh, nodding a bit. "I... certainly hope so," he murmured, before he suddenly glanced over at the staircase as it began to groan and shake a little bit. Just how old was it?

A few moments of pure anticipation later, a rather slender looking woman came into view, fiddling her blonde hair into a ponytail as she went. Unlike Peach and Daisy's dresses, she donned a somewhat form-fitting blue shirt with long sleeves, tucked into a pair of crisp black pants. Thankfully, no gloves, so maybe there was still hope for him. "So what's the big emergency?" she asked as she hit the last stair, looking up and blinking a few times in surprise as soon as she saw Marth. "Who's this? Customers usually don't go into the back room..."

Marth gave a small smile and a somewhat shy wave as Peach replied, "Because this isn't a customer, silly! This is our new intern, Marth."

"Intern?" she questioned, glancing at Peach as she stepped closer – which allowed Marth to realize that this woman was a _giant. _Obviously not literally, but she was easily over six feet tall. Even without the highly-unnecessary heels. Her sharp gaze immediately moved to Marth again to study him more intently, and he suddenly had the urge to shrink away a bit. "When did we get an intern?"

"Today," Peach replied simply, crossing one of her legs over the other as the other blonde moved to take a seat. In the metal spike chair, of course, because where _else _would she sit? "I thought it would be a nice surprise."

Marth blinked a few times in response to this, his initial shock wearing off as he looked to Peach with renewed confusion. "You mean... you didn't tell anyone I was coming?" he asked incredulously, and the woman looked to him with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, I told Daisy," she pointed out with a glance towards the woman, who nodded as if she was important. "Otherwise I don't think she would've believed you. But if I told anyone else it wouldn't be a surprise, would it?"

The intimidating metal-chair woman laughed softly at his expression, shaking her head and smiling slightly. Her face only seemed to soften slightly. "Don't worry, you'll get used to her. It's pretty commonplace around here. Should I introduce myself now, or should I wait for everyone else to show up?" she asked, now directing her gaze towards Peach, who pursed her lips a bit in thought.

"Might as well wait," she said in a slight sing-songy voice. "I don't think it'll take long for anyone else to show up, anyways. It _better not_." She sent a pointed look towards the stairs, and right on time, they began to shake a bit, not nearly as violently as when the first arrival had come.

A few moments later, a brunette woman in a flowing purple dress seemed to float down the stairs, brushing a strand of perfectly straight hair out of her face as she looked upwards again. "Coven meeting?" she inquired gently, stepping forwards and slowly looking from the familiar face to the unfamiliar one. "I take it we have a new guest?"

"Perceptive as always," the woman who Marth had decided to dub Spiky-Chair Woman remarked. "This is our new intern."

The newcomer raised a slender eyebrow as she looked to Marth with a surprisingly piercing stare. He felt as if she was dissecting him on the spot for some sort of deeper observation. "Intern?" she murmured faintly, pausing in her steps before she suddenly broke out into a warm smile that dramatically changed her face. "Ah, well it's always nice to see a new face," she said, stepping over to her own seat, directly to the left of Peach's. It was very obviously antique; the fabric looked to be cracked leather, and its lining seemed to be a slightly burnished copper. That in itself wasn't too odd, but the copper was covered in bright golden runes that almost seemed to glow. As soon as she sat down, they actually _did _begin to glow softly, making Marth stare blankly before glancing to her face again and receiving a small laugh.

Over the next few minutes, there was a flow of several other women; one was _also _very tall and willowy, her turquoise dress dragging on the floor slight as she sat in a rocking chair that seemed to hold a galaxy, complete with shifting stars and lights. Another seemed to be a very small child in a pink, fluffy jacket and boots who took a seat on a chair seemingly made of ice; another very small girl made her way to the stool from earlier, and she swung her legs a little bit as she openly stared at him with big eyes. Finally, a very pale woman with silver hair sat down on the sphere, and it morphed into what was just a simple office swivel chair; she stared at him for a few moments before spinning in it idly. No one spoke to him other than the first two arrivals, instead opting to speak to one another or two Peach as they waited.

Marth wasn't really sure what they were waiting for; there was still one chair left empty, sure, but there didn't seem to be any signs of someone else coming. Feeling rather unsure about himself, Marth slowly turned to open his mouth and ask Peach a question – right as what looked to be a _pigeon _burst out of the stairs. Smoking.

The intern jumped and stared at it with wide eyes, and it flung itself towards him as it shrieked. Without really thinking about it, he snapped his hand to the side, effectively getting rid of whatever was _burning _on it, at the very least. It flew around in a flurry of feathers, and most of the girls simply glanced at it in amusement before going back to their conversations. Bewildered, he looked to Peach instead, who seemed merely amused as she turned towards the stairs again, which began shaking violently just a few moments later.

"Anyone seen a pigeon?" a rather deep voice called down, and a head poked out from the top of the stairs a second later, raising an eyebrow. His eyes flicked across the room, settling first on Marth with a look of utmost interest before settling on the bird cruising about.

"I dunno," Spiky-Chair Woman called after him, raising her eyebrows. "I might have. Can you describe it, maybe?"

"Smoking, burning, due for pickup around seven tonight," the man went on, and he hurried down the rest of the stairs before coming forwards and whistling. The pigeon, which was aimed straight for Marth's head, instead barely whizzed over it to land delicately on his finger, chirping happily. He stroked its feathers gently, raising an eyebrow as he inspected it. "Okay, maybe not burning," he added, glancing back to the room again. "Who can I thank for that?"

"Our new intern," Peach piped up pleasantly, gesturing to the man seated beside her. "Before it could rain burning feathers onto my carpet."

"There have been _far worse things _on every carpet in here, you know," he pointed out, but his deep blue eyes were situated completely on Marth's own. "When did we get an intern?"

There was a soft laugh from the woman on the left, and she glanced up to the newcomer with a raised eyebrow. "Today, evidently. Put your little bird away so we can all get introduced, would you?"

"Fine, fine," the man grumbled, finally tearing his eyes away to focus on the pigeon again. He seemed rather casual, as did most people here; but instead of the long sleeves most people wore, he had a short sleeve red shirt and simple jeans. And sturdy black gloves, that seemed rather out of place. But so did his wildly mussed up hair, and so did everything, so Marth forced himself to look away before he was caught staring.

He heard the beating of wings as the bird flew back upstairs again, and he glanced back to the man as he took the final unoccupied seat; the armchair with the fluffy armrests. It was directly to the right of Peach's couch, which meant that the head witch was at least between them, but the man still looked back at him with an eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"I didn't know any men worked here," Marth blurted out without thinking, and then immediately regretted it. His face grew a bit pink, and he opened his mouth to try and recover before the other man chuckled a little bit.

"We have a few, depending on the day," he replied, waving his hand a bit. That in itself was confusing, but he simply went on, "But yes, I'm here. I certainly hope that's not a problem." He raised an eyebrow again, and Marth really wished he would stop looking at him with those _eyes. _They made it a bit hard to formulate something intelligent.

"I... N-Not at all," he stammered, finally looking away again. Or impossible, as it was.

Peach giggled lightly at this interaction, but finally clapped her hands once. Despite the slightly muffled noise, all of the chatter immediately ceased, and every eye was turned onto her. "Right, then! As you may have noticed, we have a new guest!" she announced cheerfully, and everyone glanced promptly to Marth and back again. "This is Marth Lowell, and he will be joining us as an intern. Please do try not to scare him off! Of hurt him. Just kidding, of course," she added, looking over to him at his slight twitch.

"Now then! Introductions, now that we're all here. Showing off is permitted, but _please _don't go too overboard," she warned, staring pointedly at the woman in the spiky chair, who simply smiled sweetly at her. "Clockwise, I can start. My name is Peach Toadstool, but I suppose you're already aware," she said directly to him, smiling brightly again. "I'm the head witch, and I specialize in potions and basic healing magic." She then nodded to the woman in the antique chair, who sat up and cleared her throat.

"My name is Zelda Hyrule," she said to him gently, smiling as well. "I am the general bookkeeper here, and I deal with inscriptions – tomes, scrolls, runes, the like – and basic illusions and teleportation." To demonstrate, she flicked her hand in a catching movement, and Daisy's pillow suddenly appeared in her hand. It returned to its rightful spot a moment later, and the orange-clad woman huffed a bit as she settled.

"I'm Samus Aran," said the woman in the metal chair, jerking a thumb at her chest and smiling a little bit. "I do battle magic. Weapons and offensive things... you know, that kind of stuff." She flicked her hands out and small spikes appeared on her fingertips before evaporating again. It was very simple, but given what she was sitting on, effective enough.

Next came the young girl, who smiled shyly at him and played with her brown hair idly. "Um... my name is Nana, but people call me 'Bud,' sometimes," she said quietly, glancing aside. "I can do some ice magicy stuff, but I'm still learning how..." She held out her hands – which were covered by white mittens – and blew; a small ice butterfly materialized before disappearing again, and she looked away bashfully in response to Marth's bright smile.

"I'm Daisy Sarasa!" the ginger greeted proudly, tilting her head a little and crossing her arms. "Of course, you already know that. I'm the secretary most days of the week, but I do some plant magic. Growing and flowers and stuff, you know?" She held her hands out in front of her, and a vine grew between them and erupted into bloom before crumbling away. The woman crossed her arms again after this, smiling a bit smugly to herself. "I can also do a little bit of alchemy."

The pale woman next to her raised an eyebrow slightly in amusement before looking back to Marth and smiling a bit. "My name's Wilma, but everyone usually just calls me Wil," she told him, leaning back in her swivel chair. "I do illusions. Like the outside of the mansion, or..." She paused for a moment before covering her face with her hands, removing them a moment later. Staring back at him seemed to be Peach's face, correct to the smallest detail, before it faded back to Wil's rather plain face. She laughed softly at his apparent reaction, glancing to the next person in line.

The next one seemed to be another small child with bobbed brown hair, still swinging her feet back and forth. "My name's Vivian," she finally said after a few moments of silence, her face finally breaking into a more sincere looking smile. "But you can just call me Vivi or Vi. I do plant magic, as well," she explained, letting a small flower bloom on the tip of her finger before wilting rather quickly. "I also animate inanimate objects, on the occasion." It was odd to have a repeated specialty like that, especially as a primary power... but Marth pushed the thought aside as they moved forwards.

Next came the woman with the very pale hair, and she smiled calmly at him before tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "My name is Rosalina," she said in a very slight monotone. "I am primarily a fortune teller, reading signs in stars and creating star charts and the like, but I also can do advanced levitation and teleportation." She reached into the pocket of her dress and pulled out a wand, topped with a small star; she flicked it and several of the pictures on the walls flew into the air, swapping places before shifting themselves back into place. She folded her hands back into her lap a moment later, smiling at him once more before turning to the final member.

The man stared at him intently for a moment or two, his eyes seeming to dance with amusement before he spoke. "And I'm Ike," he finally said, a gentle smile on his face. "I'm the head assistant, and technically one of the co-founders, though it was Peach's idea. So I let her take the credit," he teased, glancing to the witch, who rolled her eyes. "I specialize in familiars and fire magic." Well, that explained the flaming pigeon, he supposed. And the fireplace so close to his chair. "Sometimes at the same time," he added with a small wink, and he tugged one of his gloves off to snap his fingers. A small flame flickered to life on his thumb, and it was extinguished with a flick of the wrist. He had to wonder what it was like to try and master two of the most unpredictable forms of magic, honestly; how much trial and error? How lucky was this man to be alive?

He realized through his wondering that all eyes were now on him again, and when Peach kindly nudged him in the side, he let out a soft 'oh!' before clearing his throat. "My name is Marth Lowell," he said softly, slowly letting his eyes scan the room. "I guess I'm the intern here, now... and I haven't really chosen my specialty yet. I was hoping to figure that out here."

A few eyebrows around the room went up in response to that; a few glances were passed around. And he realized then just what a fool he must look like; a grown man like him, and he hadn't even chosen his specialty yet. The little _girls _already knew what to work towards! But after just a moment, there were a few nods and smiles, and Zelda spoke up from beside him. "Do you have a preferred method of casting? Tomes, staffs, wand, incantation...?"

Marth swallowed a little bit again, wringing his hands as his nerves suddenly resurfaced all at once. "Er... not really," he said softly, glancing towards the table in the center. "I haven't experimented very much..."

"I would expect a Lowell to have a at least a bit of experience," Rosalina remarked, though not unkindly. "Has it simply been a lack of interest?"

The bluenette flushed a little bit out of embarrassment, rubbing at the back of his neck a little. "Er... I suppose so. I've done a lot of study about _theory, _but not much actual practice..."

"Oh! There's nothing wrong with a good study!" Zelda piped up, seeming to positively beam. "What sorts of books did you read? Do you remember the authors or what libraries you visited?"

"You know, I think you were always destined to become a wizard," Ike commented from across the table, resting his arm against one of his furry armrests and leaning his head against his palm. "You just scream it, especially when anyone mentions _book._"

"There's no way I could be a wizard!" Zelda replied with a small frown, shaking her head. "That would be far too boring and lonely..."

Samus smirked a little bit, raising an eyebrow as she added, "Plus, then you'd have to grow one of those old wise beards, right? Besides, I think Rosalina would make a better wizard. She's usually up in her observatory-tower-thing, anyways."

Rosalina let out a soft sigh in response, regarding the other blonde before she pointed out quietly, "I once considered it. But as Zelda said, I doubt I would make it very long without a sense of community."

"You mean sense of pandemonium," Ike interjected as he looked back at her, and this conversation went around the table for a few minutes. Marth was rather amazed as to how quickly they were able to derail any form of conversation, and he was rather content simply listening in on all of them exchanging words. They were all so close, it seemed; he didn't know how he could possibly fit into this dynamic without disrupting anything.

Finally, the only one who hadn't said anything thus far finally burst out louder than anyone currently speaking, "Don't worry, Marth! We can learn together!" Nana then promptly looked very embarrassed, seeming to shrink down in her seat again. Everyone immediately went silent in response to this, first looking to the young girl in surprise and then over to Marth in varying degrees of embarrassment for leaving him in the dust.

The intern himself was rather stunned for a moment or two before he gave her a very gentle and kind smile, tilting his head to the side a little bit. "Thank you, Nana. I hope that... I can learn to fit in with all of you, eventually," he said softly, and Ike chuckled a little bit.

"Oh, if you can deal with us long enough, I'm sure you'll fit right in," he assured him, smiling and raising an eyebrow. "If you're flexible to put up with our antics, you're flexible enough to fit into them, too."

Marth paused for a moment or two, considering before he slowly raised an eyebrow. "Considering there was a flaming pigeon in the room right before you showed up... I'm not sure how excited I am to fit into them, really," he replied with a hint of a smile, prompting a few laughs and giggles about the room, including Ike.

"Wait until you see the real excitement!" Daisy piped up with a grin. "You haven't seen anything yet!"

"Never a dull moment!" Peach agreed, clasping her hands together as she looked to Marth. "That would be just so terribly boring, wouldn't you say?"

Marth smiled a little bit again, his previous nervousness slowly washing away from the welcoming atmosphere. "I take it you're not a fan of other covens," he commented, and she grinned brightly in response.

"Oooh, good guess!"

"Why else would we make this one?" Ike spoke up again, grinning as well.

"Don't listen to them," Wil spoke up from across the table, leaning against it and raising her eyebrows very seriously. "This is all just an elaborate scheme for them to take over the magical world."

Samus gave a soft snort in response to this as Rosalina gave a light laugh, and Vivi looked at Wil with equal seriousness. "Well, this is hardly the way to go about that."

"Do you have any other suggestions?" the illusionist replied, and the small girl tapped her chin thoughtfully with her finger.

"Yes, but I don't want to frighten Marth too badly," she replied, looking back to the intern again and giving a small smile. He couldn't tell if she was serious or not, to be quite honest.

Daisy, however, raised her eyebrows to look at Vivi pointedly. "You shouldn't hold back. If that scares him off, I don't think he'll have the spine to stay!"

Marth smiled a little bit, unsure whether or not he should take this as a joke, and then blinked in surprise when Peach suddenly got to her feet again. "Right!" she called out, clapping her hands together once to draw attention to herself further. It was unneeded; as soon as she stood, everyone already had their eyes on her. "As much as this is very exciting, I'm sure Marth would like to get settled in." She glanced towards him with a smile and a raised eyebrow, and he had the distinct impression that this decision was being made for him. "So, I'm going to go show him to his room so he can begin unpacking. Everyone else can return to work."

"How kind of you, Peach," Ike remarked as he smoothly got to his feet again, stretching a little bit before smiling at Marth again and raising an eyebrow slightly. "I'll see you around, I hope." He gave him a small wave as he stepped past, and with varying levels of sighs and groans, everyone else filed past him to the stairs. Everyone gave them rather standard greetings, with Zelda touching his shoulder lightly and Nana hugging his leg and Vivi simply giving him a small nod. He watched all of them go with a small sigh, finally getting to his feet as well.

He paused for a moment, glancing down at his relatively nice attire before he looked up to Peach, who was smiling kindly at him again. "... You know, this entire time, I can't tell if I've been under or overdressed," he commented with a small smile, and the witch laughed softly.

"There's no dress code around the coven, so you don't have to worry! Whatever you're happy to work in," she told him, moving towards the spiral stairs on the left. "We do, of course, have a uniform for circle or official meetings... but you probably won't have to worry about those too much."

Marth blew out a breath through his nose at this, nodding a little as he followed her. He eyed the stairs a bit warily as they came to the bottom, not entirely sure how trustworthy they were, but he decided to brave them after Peach smiled warmly at him and started up. If she could do this in heels, he would just have to brave it.

They did shake and creak precariously as he ascended, but when he came to the top, he did seem to be alive. Not that he trusted them. Maybe he would just go around whenever he had the chance. Regardless, he took a moment to take in the second floor, which seemed to consist of a very long hallway and multiple rooms leading off of it. At the end, he thought he could see it lead to another hallway, perhaps, but he couldn't be certain. The floors here were carpeted in the same plush red as the entrance, but the rooms were simply white, instead. Pictures were hung here, as well, usually next to or on doors; some of them were covered in all sorts of decorations, while a few only had names.

"This is, for the most part, our quarters," Peach announced, throwing her arms wide and smiling at Marth again. "That door leads to the front of the store, and it's also an easier access to the offices," she explained, pointing across the hallway.

"'For the most part?' And why aren't the two halls just connected?" Marth asked curiously, and Peach smiled once more.

"Well, we have some personal rooms throughout the mansion that we use instead, every once in a while. And it's for privacy, mostly. Plus, when the path is a little more complex, it's harder for things to get in here," she added casually, turning and moving down the hall. She pointed at the doors in turn, pointing out whose room was whose until she came near the end of the hall. A clean door with a simple nameplate – 'Marth.' "This is where you'll be staying," she explained, stepping inside and letting him gaze around.

It was honestly rather... simple. The floor was simple hardwood, and the walls were white, as well. In the middle of the opposite wall was a large window with a windowsill someone could easily lay in, which honestly made _no _sense given the structure of the building. There were probably walls on all sides, but it still displayed the darkening sky perfectly. On one side of this window was a wardrobe and dresser; on the other was a desk and a chair. A large bed was on the wall next to the door with a nightstand next to it, but otherwise the room felt rather... bare. There was a lamp on the nightstand and another larger one in the corner, but there was nothing on the walls, nothing to set it apart. It was all rather terribly generic.

His eyes went to his luggage sitting at the end of the bed, and he smiled a bit as he stepped over to it. It was then when he realized there was a sizable mirror sitting on his desk, and he frowned in curiosity even as Peach spoke up.

"It's not very lively, I hope you don't mind." She looked around, frowning a little bit as she considered it. "You're free to decorate however you like, and we'll be happy to help you with any furniture changes, or anything to make you more comfortable. We can even make the room bigger, if you need!" She smiled over at him before blinking at his interest at the mirror. With another warm smile, she stepped over with a soft clicking of her heels before coming to stand beside him. "This," she explained without real prompting, "is how we communicate within the coven. Whenever someone goes out on a job, they usually take a handheld mirror, too." She reached over the desk, tapping on the reflective surface a few times.

Marth blinked in surprise when he watched it ripple, and he glanced to Peach in confusion. "How does it know who you want to talk to?" he asked, and she smiled a bit again.

"Well, you usually just think it. Mirrors are very attentive, you know," she commented, and Marth watched as the mirror slowly settled again to reveal not his own face, but the now slightly sooty face of Ike's. Of course, he was a bit tiny, since he could see almost his entire body and then some, but it was still rather evident who it was.

The man slowly raised an eyebrow as he glanced between the two, and after a pause he asked in a slightly distorted and distant voice, "Do you need something?"

Marth's eyes widened slightly in response to this as Peach simply laughed. "Oh, no, I was just showing Marth how his mirror worked," she explained, waving her hand a little bit. "Goodness, your office is messy as usual... could you look for us, so I can explain how to tell who's calling?"

Ike simply frowned a little bit in response to this insult to his cleanliness, and he looked like he wanted to say something in response, but instead he simply sighed and nodded. "Sure thing," he replied.

Peach smiled and then tapped the mirror twice, and the image of Ike was replaced with her own smile and Marth's look of slight awe. After a small pause, the surface of his mirror clouded and began to ripple again even though Peach hadn't touched it further. A soft humming noise came from it, similar to the ringing of a telephone.

"Now," she explained as she raised a hand, "every mirror is able to recognize each other. It's sort of like.. caller ID, if you will. So if you tap it once..." She demonstrated, pressing her delicate finger against the glass once and watching as it stilled. The words 'IKE: OFFICE' floated across the surface of the glass, and Marth blinked a few times. "Everyone has a mirror in their office and in their bedroom. There are a few scattered in other areas, like the front desk, for example, and there are several others people check out for outside jobs. It changes descriptions based on who has it checked out," she clarified, and then tapped three times again. Ike's face resurfaced, and he raised an eyebrow once more.

"Are you done?" he asked simply, seeming rather distracted. Marth wasn't really surprised; a pigeon suddenly dived at his face, and he ducked and sent it a dirty look before looking back into the mirror.

"Yes! I'll see you in a bit, Ike," Peach replied, and with two taps the mirror was once again just a reflection. She turned back to Marth again after that, tilting her head slightly. "You can write yourself a guide for it, if you want. One tap ID, two taps to cut communication, three or more to start or accept a 'call.' It might take a bit of practice, but you'll pick it up fast," she assured him.

Marth blew out a long breath in response to this, nodding slowly as he looked back to the mirror. "Seems... complicated," he said uncertainly, and Peach laughed softly.

"A bit! But we don't mind helping out. When Zelda first came up with this it was a disaster, believe me – and now it's like second nature. But if you have any questions, just look for me," she added, pointing to the mirror again. "I'll be in my office. And if you accidentally get someone else, they can help you." She smiled warmly, adjusting her hat slightly as she stepped back towards the door. "Do you have any questions, now? Anything you need?"

Marth considered for a few long moments, staring slowly around the room before he let out a long sigh. "No," he finally decided, glancing back to the witch. "I don't think... that there's anything, really. Thank you very much, Peach." He smiled warmly, and she seemed incredibly pleased.

"You're very welcome, Marth! I look forward to having you as a part of the family!" She smiled at him again, stepping towards the door. "Goodnight, then!" She closed it softly behind her, and Marth was left staring at where she'd gone before he blew out a large breath. He moved over to the bed and simply fell backwards onto it, staring at the ceiling as he contemplated everything that had happened within the last hour or so. To say that it was hard to take in was a bit of an understatement, but he supposed he had to get used to it. This was his job now, after all. And his life.

With another sigh, he pushed himself up and shook his head, looking to his suitcases.

He wondered just how long he would last here.


End file.
